A Lesson In Where School Money Goes

September 04, 1987|By Mario Cortesi.

CHICAGO — As a teacher, I receive a lot of guff this time of year from neighbors and others incensed over their newest property tax increases. When looking over the breakdown of the allocation of these funds, they notice how much goes to education, and they assume that this is entirely because of teachers.

May I use your paper to do a little end-of-summer teaching and educate them on just what is involved in the spending of these dollars?

First, there are several noninstructional personnel who provide the many necessary services to our children that are not a direct part of their classroom instruction. I work in a large high school with a student population in excess of 3,600. Here is a partial list of nonclassroom personnel: truant officer, attendance officer, security officer, disciplinarian, principal and assistants, librarians, counselors, programming director, bookroom clerks, cafeteria personnel, office clerks and secretaries, teacher aides,

Other schools also have bus drivers, bus attendants and athletic field supervisors. Add to this list those whose service to the students and the schools is less direct: the district superintendent and his staff; the central office and its staff of coordinators, payroll clerks, insurance clerks, departmental officers, purchasing clerks and the multitude in charge of various other concerns that are used to run a large educational system.

Granted that some of these personnel overlap and some of the money comes from sources other than property taxes, but I hope you get the idea that an educational system is much more than the individual in front of the class.

Add to this list the cost of heating large, outdated buildings (often with obsolete heating equipment) and the cost of electricity. For my school, take your electric bill and multiply it by a city block`s worth of bills to get a general idea.

Now add the general costs of maintaining such structures. You know that your home costs a great deal in upkeep; try to visualize roof repairs, window replacement, plastering, plumbing and painting (often to erase vandalism) for a school.

Books, chalk, paper and other supplies constantly must be replaced or repaired.

And let us not forget that, in many cases, loans on the buildings themselves still need to be paid, as well as legal fees and liability insurance.

Now for your homework: Find out all of these costs, divide by the number of students, and divide that by the number of hours a student receives services. You will find that the cost of educating each child (and keeping each off the streets so the parents can be employed and receive the pay and benefits about which they grumble when teachers seek the same) is probably less than what you would pay a babysitter. Look at the tax bill again. Isn`t it a real bargain?